Home Office

Repatriation

Baroness Suttie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current procedures for processing official documents of homeless people wishing to return to their country of origin, and whether they have plans to improve those procedures.

Lord Bates: Immigration Enforcement works closely with homeless charities conducting activity across the country often encountering EU or foreign nationals who are homeless. Any individual that wishes to return home can be assisted either by the charity or Immigration Enforcement to obtain a travel document, liaising with embassies and high commissions if necessary to obtain a document quickly. Immigration Enforcement can also issue a European Union letter if an individual wishes to travel to their home country within the EU.In addition, the Home Office Voluntary Departures Service provides support to those with identified vulnerability who wish to make a voluntary return. The support available depends on the unique circumstances of each individual but may include help with travel, transfers, medical support and help to reintegrate in the country of return.The Department is constantly reviewing its processes to further improve its engagement with partners.

Hate Crime: Internet

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Statement by Lord Faulks on 10 December 2015 (HLWS380), whether they will continue to oppose common EU standards relating to online hate speech and insist that such a matter is for decision by the Member States.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Yes. This is a decision for individual member states.

Visas: Commonwealth

Lord Howell of Guildford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to expanding the new Chinese two-year visit visa to include Commonwealth nations which require (1) a tourist visa, and (2) a business visa.

Lord Bates: The UK is piloting in China, from 11 January, two-year multiple entry visitor visas at the same price as the current standard six month visitor visa. China has made the same offer for British citizens. There are no plans to introduce this in other countries.The citizens of a majority of Commonwealth countries do not require a visa to visit the UK and the UK offers customers an efficient and prompt visa processing service.

Welfare in Detention of Vulnerable Persons Review

Baroness Lister of Burtersett: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they propose to respond in detail to the recommendations in the report of the Shaw review into the welfare in detention of vulnerable persons.

Baroness Lister of Burtersett: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have accepted the recommendation in the report of the Shaw review into the welfare in detention of vulnerable persons that there should be an absolute exclusion from detention of pregnant women; and if not, why not.

Lord Bates: The Government’s position on the Stephen Shaw review was set out in the Written Ministerial Statement laid on 14 January 2016. Mr Shaw's recommendations, including on pregnant women, will be taken into account as we develop arrangements for the adult at risk policy referred to in the Written Ministerial Statement.

Undocumented Migrants: Employment

Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the letter by Lord Bates to Lord Rosser on 8 January (DEP2016–0028) and the remarks by Lords Bates on 18 January (HL Deb, col 624), how they arrived at their assessment that in-country seizure could double with the use of the extended powers enabled by the new illegal working offence.

Lord Bates: The Government arrived at this assessment based on the impact of the court’s judgement in the case of Nuro on the ability of Home Office Immigration Enforcement to use Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) cash seizure powers which were conferred on immigration officers by section 24 of the UK Border Act 2007. The courts have held (Nuro v Home Office [2014]) that as it is not a criminal offence for an illegal immigrant who is not subject to immigration conditions to be self employed in the UK, there is insufficient causation between the offence of illegal entry to the UK and obtaining the earnings to apply POCA powers. The creation of the offence of illegal working will address this judgment and provide a broader basis for cash seizure.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Construction: Skilled Workers

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to tackle the shortage of skilled workers in the construction industry, and what assessment they have made of the implications of that shortage for their housing and infrastructure programmes.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Government is undertaking a range of activities to support skills in the infrastructure and home building sectors. These include the reform of the apprenticeship system, the new apprenticeship levy, and the National Colleges Programme - which includes the National College for High Speed Rail. From April 2015 all government procurers of construction and infrastructure projects over £10 million are to include measures in pre-qualification and contract delivery to encourage skills development.The Construction Leadership Council and Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) have separately undertaken work to encourage more people into the construction sector, including the launch of the GO-Construct website and work with the National Careers Service and Construction Ambassadors for schools. The CITB has also been working closely with the Department for Work and Pensions, the Armed Forces resettlement service and Local Enterprise Partnerships to encourage experienced individuals into the sector. In total, £42 million was invested by CITB, supporting 18,500 construction apprentices in 2015.In addition, the Transport Infrastructure Skills Strategy, produced under the oversight of Terry Morgan, Chair of Crossrail, will set out further actions to be taken specifically to ensure the supply of skills to deliver transport infrastructure.Assessments of demand for construction skills include the National Infrastructure Plan for Skills, which estimates that 250,000 construction and 150,000 engineering construction workers will be required to meet demand in the infrastructure sector by 2020. The CITB estimate that 224,000 new construction jobs are set to be created in the UK over the next five years.

Department for International Development

Developing Countries: Malnutrition

Lord McColl of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the relationship between malnutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene.

Baroness Verma: DFID commissioned the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine to undertake a review of the evidence on the links between water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and nutrition in 2012. The review concluded that there was good evidence that WASH has an impact on under-nutrition. At the very basic level, the act of infant and child feeding needs good personal hygiene – hand washing with soap and water, plus good food hygiene. In addition, water is important in that it is generally required to prepare complementary foods. It needs to come from a safe source and then be collected, transported and stored safely. The living environment of infants has to be free from faecal contamination to minimise the risk of ingesting pathogens or coming into contact with intestinal worms.This review is currently being updated drawing on a report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2014 which estimated that 50% of child under-nutrition is associated with repeated diarrhoea or intestinal worm infections as a result of unsafe water, inadequate sanitation or insufficient hygiene. There is increasing evidence that chronic diarrheal disease may inhibit nutrient absorption even if sufficient food is consumed. This latter condition referred to as Environmental Enteropathy is currently one of the subjects of a large randomised control trial being conducted in Zimbabwe with DFID support.

Developing Countries: Malnutrition

Lord McColl of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that water, sanitation and hygiene are considered in all plans to tackle malnutrition.

Baroness Verma: All DFID nutrition programmes are based on an assessment of the causes of malnutrition, in line with the UNICEF conceptual framework. These include the role that lack of clean water and poor sanitation and hygiene plays in making children ill and therefore increasing the risk of malnutrition. DFID is already integrating water, sanitation and hygiene activities into nutrition programmes in a number of countries and we are actively looking for opportunities to do so in other places where we are addressing malnutrition.

Ministry of Justice

Administration of Justice

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they intend to take in response to the Lord Chief Justice's Review of the Administration of Justice in the Courts of 2015, which found that "our system of justice has become unaffordable to most" and that "no satisfactory means of funding the provision of our system of justice has yet been achieved".

Lord Faulks: The Government has put in place measures to support people in resolving their disputes by means of more informal and less costly remedies, and we have made sure that legal aid remains available for the highest priority cases. There is, however, more to do if we are to achieve our vision of one nation justice.As the Lord Chief Justice made clear in his annual report, the investment the Government is making to modernise our courts and tribunals is a significant step, and one which will enable us to tackle many of the issues he identified.We will continue to work closely with the judiciary to make sure that our justice system delivers faster and fairer justice for all.

Recovery of Costs

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will make provision to apply fixed recoverable costs across the range of fast-track cases, and in the lower reaches of the multi-track, as recommended by the judiciary and referred to in the Lord Chief Justice’s Review of the Administration of Justice in the Courts of 2015.

Lord Faulks: The Government remains supportive of the principle of extending fixed recoverable costs and we continue to consider areas in which implementation might be appropriate and workable.

Ministry of Defence

Army: Officers

Earl Attlee: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many (1) SO1, and (2) SO2, staff appointments are established at the British Army Headquarters, and of those, how many are gapped or unfilled, excluding short handover periods.

Earl Howe: Army HQ in Andover is currently undergoing reorganisation. There are presently 221 SO1 and 375 SO2 established posts in Andover, but this includes elements of the Army that are not part of Army HQ, including Commander Field Army and parts of Personnel Support Command. Of these, seven SO1 and 13 SO2 posts are gapped. The final structure of Army HQ under the Army Command Review is not expected to be finalised until April 2016 at the earliest.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect the Thales Watchkeeper unmanned aerial vehicle to come into full service.

Earl Howe: The Watchkeeper Tactical Remotely Piloted Aircraft System was brought into service with the Army in 2014 and subsequently deployed to support operations in Afghanistan. Full operating capability is forecast to be achieved in the second quarter of 2017.

Bomb Disposal

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made in Project Starter to acquire explosive ordnance disposal unmanned ground vehicles.

Earl Howe: Project Starter passed Initial Gate in October 2014 and is currently in the Assessment Phase.

Ukraine: Military Aid

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Statement by Earl Howe on 18 January concerning a gifting package to Ukraine (HLWS463), whether this gift will be financed from the overseas aid budget, the defence budget, or another source.

Earl Howe: The gift of 3,500 first aid kits will be purchased using funds from Her Majesty's Government's Conflict, Stability, and Security Fund (CSSF). The CSSF is a cross-Whitehall fund. As well as defence reform, the CSSF Ukraine programme supports a number of interventions including strategic communications, peace-building activities and support to international organisations.

Warships: Procurement

Lord Hoyle: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether steel produced in Britain will be used for the construction of the Type 26 Frigates and other vessels announced in the recent Strategic Security and Defence Review.

Earl Howe: As to the source of steel to be used for the construction of the Type 26 Global Combat Ships, I refer the noble Lord to the answer given by my hon. Friend, the Minister for Defence Procurement in the House of Commons on 20 January 2016 to Question 22739.The National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 (Cmd 9161) also announced that we will launch a concept stage for a new General Purpose Frigate, build two further Offshore Patrol Vessels and buy three new logistics ships to support the Fleet. As with the Type 26 Global Combat Ship, it is too early to say from where the steel for these programmes will be sourced, but a range of UK suppliers and others will be invited to bid and provide steel for these programmes.



20160120 - QnA extract on Type 26 Frigates
(Word Document, 15.68 KB)

Department for Communities and Local Government

Local Government

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the requirements for a city which decides to return from a mayoral form of governance to a Leader of the Council model, when the decision to have a mayor was made by the council itself and not through a referendum.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Where a council has established mayoral governance following a council resolution but without a referendum, it may change that governance model once 5 years has elapsed from the initial resolution.A referendum on whether to move away from the mayoral governance model may be held at any time after this point, if the council resolves to hold such a referendum or if it is petitioned by 5% or more of the local electorate. The council must meet the cost of the referendum.If the referendum takes place within the five years following the council resolution, but a second mayoral term of office has begun during those five years, the governance change will take place on the third day after the next ordinary election of a mayor.

Muslims: Females

Baroness Uddin: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of language classes for Muslim women in respect of radicalisation.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Our new English language offer, worth £20 million over this Parliament, will help women in our most isolated communities get the training they need. This new programme will be informed by six projects we have funded as part of our current community-based English language programme. By the end of March this year the projects will have provided training to 33,500 adults – the majority women, with over half from Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and Somalian ethnic groups.Community-based English language programmes can help build women’s confidence in using English in daily activities such as engaging with their children’s teachers, interacting with public services and playing a full part in the local community.

Muslims: Females

Baroness Uddin: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what formal mechanisms they have in place to consult Muslim women.

Baroness Uddin: To ask Her Majesty’s Government who are their advisers on matters related to Muslim women.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Government Ministers and officials regularly speak with a range of British Muslim women to seek their views on key issues. The Prime Minister hosted a Community Engagement Forum on 14 January with sixteen influential Muslim women, to discuss their role in Britain today and the importance of tackling issues of forced gender segregation, discrimination and isolation. In addition, four of the cross-Government Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group’s ten independent members are themselves Muslim women. The Group discusses a range of issues, for example, hate incidents on public transport which disproportionately affect visibly Muslim women.My Department funds a number of projects that work with Muslim women including community based English language courses, women’s empowerment initiatives and the development of leadership and networking skills. As part of this, my officials regularly engage with the project leads, associated charities and participants on relevant issues affecting Muslim women.My rt hon Friend the Prime Minister has commissioned Louise Casey to carry out a review on how to boost opportunity and integration in our most isolated and deprived communities. She will report on her findings in due course.

Travellers

Lord Black of Brentwood: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the number of Gypsies and Travellers in the UK.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: In the 2011 census, 63,500 people in the United Kingdom identified their ethnic group as Gypsy or Traveller.

Marriage

Lord Scriven: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the Archbishop of Canterbury on the recent communiqué from Anglican Primates about homosexuality and same-sex marriage.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Government has made no representations to the Most Rev. and rt hon Archbishop of Canterbury, or the Anglican Community, regarding the recent communique from the Anglican Primates, issued on 15 January.The Government does not normally make comments in response to statements issued by the Church of England.

Property Development: Floods

Lord Mawhinney: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what powers they have, if any, to overrule local authorities that grant planning permission that allows residential or commercial properties to be built on land designated as a flood plain.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Secretary of State has specific intervention powers to consider an application for himself before a decision has been issued by the local planning authority and powers to revoke or modify a planning permission before the permission is implemented. Local planning authorities, through their Local Plans and planning decisions are expected to avoid inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding by directing development away from areas at highest risk, including floodplains. Between April 2011 and March 2015, over 99 percent of proposed new homes had planning outcomes in line with Environment Agency advice where they had been made aware of the decision.All local planning authorities are expected to follow the strict tests set out in national planning policy and guidance. Where these tests are not met, national policy is very clear that new development should not be allowed.

English Language: Education

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the £20 million of funding for providing English tuition for speakers of other languages announced by the Prime Minister is new money, and if so, from which budget heading it will come; whether that additional provision will be available for (1) both Muslim men and women who come to the UK on spousal visas and whose English requires improvement; (2) persons of other religions, and none, who come to the UK on spousal visas; (3) persons who are living in the UK by virtue of other kinds of permissions, such as other types of visas or following applications for asylum; (4) Muslim women and other persons who have come to the UK from other countries in the EU; and (5) UK citizens, whether or not they are Muslims; and whether that additional provision will be restricted according to how long a person has lived in the UK or their age.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The £20 million community-based English language training offer is new funding which will be routed through DCLG and will form part of its Integration Programme. The detail of how the programme will be designed, targeted and delivered will be informed by the findings of Louise Casey's Review into boosting opportunity and integration amongst isolated groups and the learning from the six community projects we have funded as part of our current Integration Programme. In particular, we will work with Louise Casey to identify the most isolated communities in England to make sure this programme is targeted at those women who need it most. We are working to deliver as early a launch date as possible for the programme in 2016/17.

HM Treasury

Health Professions: VAT

Lord Colwyn: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to extending the Nursing Agencies' VAT concession to all healthcare workers in the UK.

Lord O'Neill of Gatley: The Government has no plans to extend the Nursing Agencies VAT concession to all healthcare workers in the UK.

Cabinet Office

Third Sector

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the current status of the Big Society programme; which department and Minister is responsible for it; what projects are currently active; what is the budget for each of those projects; what changes have taken place to the programme since the general election; and what procedures are in place to report to Parliament on the programme.

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have commissioned or have plans to commission a review of the activities and achievements of the Big Society programme since its inception; if so, who is conducting this review and when it will report and to whom; and if not, why not.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The Big Society programme remains a key manifesto commitment for the Government. The 2015 Spending Review saw this commitment reaffirmed with, for example, funding for the National Citizen Service increased to over a £1 billion creating the next generation of community minded volunteers. An additional £100 million in funding for Social Impact Bonds has also been pledged to reduce demand on public services. These programmes are helping to create a stronger, more engaged nation where people and neighbourhoods are able to take greater responsibility with improving the country.These programmes are regularly reviewed and reports are publicly available.